The Chicken Or The Egg?
by JA Baker
Summary: Sheppard was the first to spot it, but then he always was observant. His only question was, which came first...
1. Chapter 1

_You know the drill by now: all I own is an over-active imagination.  
__Spoilers for Season 4 of Stargate Atlantis.  
__Posting this here as it takes place on Atlantis, but in many ways it's an SG-1 story.  
__You'll have to read it to find out why._

**The Chicken Or The Egg?**

"Excuse me, Colonel." Sheppard knocked on the office door, "Can I speak to you for a moment?"

"Of course, come in." Carter motioned him towards an empty chair, "How can I help you?"

"It's kind of complicated." Sheppard closed the door and slipped somewhat hesitantly into the seat, "It's somewhat personal, and under normal circumstances I wouldn't dream of even asking this, but as it could affect everyone in the city, I feel I have to." He took a deep breath, "Did you get married before or after you found out you were pregnant?"

There was a moment of pure silence as Carter's eyes went wide with shock, then she sent a mouthful of hot coffee clear across her desk, forcing Sheppard to dodge out of the way. She coughed a few times, trying to stop herself from chocking, before looking up.

"What makes you think I'm either married or pregnant?" She asked, trying to regain her composure.

"Well, I've known you're married since you first arrived." Sheppard fidgeted in his seat, "You had a tan, but there were two white lines on your ring finger, a sign that you'd been wearing an engagement and wedding ring when you'd gotten it, but had since taken them off. It's not so noticeable now your tan's faded, but still..."

"How very, observant of you." Carter admitted, drumming her fingers on the desk anxiously, "How many others know?"

"Well I haven't told anyone, if that's what you're asking." Sheppard sounded positively defensive, "And I've not heard anything on the grapevine, so I think that secret is safe, at least for now." He sucked a breath in through gritted teeth, "But I'm not the only one who's noticed that you seem to be a little, uneasy first thing, and that you've started drinking decaf."

"Well, congratulations, Colonel; a deduction worthy of Sherlock Holmes himself." Carter sat back, letting the built up stress pour out of her, "I'm about two mouth's gone, but I can't be sure as I've not gone to see Dr Keller yet..."

"Because the moment you do, it'll be added to your medical file and transmitted back to Earth in the next data-burst." Sheppard nodded, "And you don't want the IOA to know, because they'll relive you of command and assign someone else."

"Yes."

"And does the General know?"

"And why would I tell him?" Carter asked, almost too quickly.

"Because he's the father." Sheppard smiled warmly, "Look, I've been around the Stargate program long enough to pick up on the vibe between the two of you, and you wouldn't believe the amount of money that's been building up in the betting pool on when the two of you are going to get together..."

"$22,357.47, at the last count." Cater smirked when she saw the surprised look on his face, "Cassie told me; she's been their unofficial inside source for years. We agreed we'd split it when it hit $25,000."

"Damn!" Sheppard looked somewhat deflated, "Wonder if its too late to get my fifty-bucks back?"

"I somehow doubt it." Carter relaxed, "And to answer your original question, no; I did not know I was pregnant when we got married, I'm not even sure if I was. And yes, Jack O'Neill is now my husband and the father."

"Well, then I guess it's you who deserve the congratulations." Sheppard's face lit-up with a wide-grin, "The only thing I can't understand is why you have kept it all such a big secret?"

"The IOA know that we're married, and understand that we wanted to keep it a secret for both personal and security reasons: we've made a lot of enemy's over the years, both on Earth and elsewhere. Can you imagine what someone like Ba'al would do if he found out?" An involuntary shiver ran down Carter's spine, "As for the pregnancy? I've reached a point in my life when it's now or never; I'd put my carer ahead of my personal life for so long that I honestly thought that I'd waited too long, that I'd never be able to have a child of my own. Don't get me wrong; I love Cassie as if she was my own, but still..."

"Just not the same?"

"No, no it isn't."

"So, have you told him?"

"No, and I suppose I really should; if you've worked it out, it's only a matter of time before someone else does, and then the IOA is bound to find out." Carter frowned, "And I doubt Jack would be too happy to find out he's going to be a father again through an official memo."

"Do you think there's going to be any repercussions?" Sheppard asked, "Officially?"

"Well, the IOA is probably going to want me to stand down as head of the expedition, if not immediately then soon. And Jack's going to want to be with me, either here or on Earth, so one of us is going to have to at least take a leave of absence."

"Well, I'm not going to tell anyone; I just needed to know, in case anything happened to you."

"I know, and I should have confided in you sooner." Carter stood, "I'll go see Keller this afternoon, make it official, then send a message though to Jack, asking him to set up a secure like so I can tell him face to face, even if it is over a video-link."

"Well, good luck." Sheppard got up to leave, "And if you need help with anything, just let me know."

**The End**


	2. Chapter 2

_As I can't stand to see grown men and women beg..._

**The Chicken Or The Egg?  
****Part 2**

"Incoming wormhole." Chuck announced as the sirens started to sound, "Confirmed Midway-station IDC."

"Lower the shield." Sheppard started down the steps to the lower level, "Boy is this going to be fun..."

The forcefield protecting the Stargate flashed off, and a solitary figure in slightly rumpled USAF dress uniform stepped through, holding a battered looking duffel over one shoulder.

"General O'Neill, sir!" Sheppard saluted, "Welcome to Atlantis. We would have had a reception comity waiting for you, if we'd had any advanced warning..."

"It was a sprue-of-the-moment kind of thing." O'Neill handed over his bag, "Is Colonel Carter in her office?"

"She's in her quarters, resting." Sheppard gestured to the nearest doorway, "If you'd like to follow me."

The two men walked in silence, until O'Neill was sure they were alone.

"Sam tells me you managed to work it all out on your own." He commented as they reached the inter-city transporter, "I hope you've not been hiding your light under a bush all these years."

"Not at all, sir; just a few little things that I picked up on." Sheppard managed to keep a straight face as they stepped into the small, elevator-like room and pressed the destination screen for the accommodation block, "So I guess congratulations are in order?"

"Thank you, Colonel." O'Neill nodded, "Although if we'd waited another couple of weeks I would have walked away with over $22,000..."

"You bet on yourself?" Sheppard was stunned, "Is that a little unethical?"

"Only when you bet _against_ yourself." O'Neill managed a sly wink as the was a flash of light and the doors opened on a new stretch of corridor, "And believe me, I'm more than happy with the way things have worked out."

"Well, good luck." Sheppard stopped outside one of the doors and lowered the duffel to the floor, "I'll keep everyone off your back while the two of you talk things through."

"Thanks." O'Neill waited until the other man was gone before pressing the door chime. Much to his surprise, it opened immediately, the bright light from the hallway spilling into the dark room. Placing his bag just inside the door, he stepped through and closed and locked it behind him, darkness returning. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust, but years of back-ops had left him with good night vision that age was yet to diminish, and he soon spotted the shape curled up on the bed, back to the door.

Moving as quietly as he could, he crossed the room, shedding his cap and tie in the progress, before slipping of his jacket and laying it out carefully on the chair beside the bed. Taking off his shoes proved a little more problematic, and he cursed under his breath that he hadn't taken the time to change into something a little more practical. As it was, he was going to have to explain just why he'd had the _Odyssey_ beam him from the White House reception directly to his apartment just outside DC, just long enough to throw some clean cloths in a bag before transporting him to the SGC. Then he would have to explain why he, as head of Homeworld Security, decided to not only leave Earth unannounced, but travel all the way to Atlantis without so much as a 'by your leave' to the President. It would probably help that the President was one of a handful of people on Earth who knew what was going on, but still, it was a major break in protocol.

Finally getting both of his shoos off, he slipped onto the bed as carefully as he could, doing his best not to disturb the other occupant. Resting his head on the pillow, he pressed his face up against the familiar blond hair and breathed in deeply; the scent was intoxicating, something he could never get enough of.

"Huh?" Carter shifted, slowly waking enough to realise what was happening, "When did you get here?"

"About five minutes ago." O'Neill slid one arm around her as he spooned up behind, feeling the warmth of her body, "I've got to say, that gate-bridge-thing you and McKay came up with has its merits; they would have sent me to court-martial if I'd had to hijacked the _Odyssey_ to get here."

"You wouldn't have!" Carter laughed, snuggling back against him.

"Hey, my wife, and I'm still getting use to calling you that, contacts me from another Galaxy to tell me she's pregnant, and I supposed to just sit there and get back to work?" O'Neill kissed her on the neck, "Like that's going to happen."

"True." Carter smiled as her husband continued to plant kisses up and down her neck, "Stop that! You know what it does to me."

"That's all part of my diabolical plan, Mrs O'Neill." He whispered into her ear, nibbling the lobe gently, "I mean, you're already pregnant; what's the worst that can happen?"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Sheppard stood at the back of Stargate Operations, keeping an eye on everything, making sure nothing reached the point where he'd have to go disturb the expedition leader and her husband. Not that was a wired thought; it had taken him a couple of days to convince himself he was right before he'd worked up the nerve to confront Colonel Carter. Or was it Colonel O'Neill now? That could be interesting.

"John." McKay appeared out of nowhere, a stack of reports in his hand, "Have you seen Sam anywhere?"

"She's in her quarters." Sheppard looked round, "But if you value your life, I wouldn't disturb them right now."

"Them?" McKay blinked.

"Yeah, I guess there's something I should explain." Sheppard put an arm around his team-mates shoulder and led him away, "I know you've had a thing for Colonel Carter for a while now, but I've got some bad news. Well, actually, it's great news: just not for you..."

**The End**

_And yes, I mean it this time..._


End file.
